The $49 ticket includes five cocktails and appetizers at five pre-determined venues, plus a complimentary welcome cocktail at check-in. Tickets must be purchased in advance. Attendees can sign up as groups, or get matched up by the hosts when they arrive.

There have been a couple of changes lately at the old Vito's Cafe, a sterling Italian restaurant in a shopping center on York Road in Cockeysville. Last summer, the family-owned establishment, which had been a BYOB, got a license to serve wine, beer and liquor. And more recently, the...

The Inner Harbor's just-opened Shake Shack outpost is garnering big headlines but it's not the only new burger joint in town. On the northern edge of the city, the talk is all about the independently owned restaurant Clark Burger.

The new Fells Point restaurant Mare Nostrum is one of the nicest surprises in years. Arriving without publicity, the restaurant serves simple and wonderfully delicious food in a serene and comfortable setting.

In recent years, Peruvian restaurants have popped up throughout the city and suburbs — think Pisco in Elkridge and the much-loved Puerto 511 near the downtown library. Grille Twelve24, which opened in Mid-Town Belvedere last fall, is one of the area's newer Peruvian spots.

During the summer of 2012, Andrew Zimmern of the Travel Channel's "Bizarre Foods" shows descended on the Baltimore region to explore the food scene — including an illuminating visit to several Korean restaurants in Baltimore and in Howard County.